Gayle: Listen and act on concerns

Helene Gayle has been a regular at Goizueta Business School, speaking often to classes and student assemblies in an effort to share her experience and help educate future leaders. The President and CEO of CARE most recently spoke about the challenges and opportunities working in developing countries — and equally important tasks in the United States.

‘”We face a lot of inequality here, in our own country,” said Gayle,speaking with Associate Professor of Finance Jeff Rosensweig and his class of MBA students. “Some of the ways in which we work overseas we should bring here to this country.”

Gayle said part of CARE’s international success is working inside other cultures.

“A big part of it is being educated… Not turning a blind eye to [the] issues,” she said. “”If you listen to people, and are sensitive to what they have to say, you don’t make too many mistakes.”

Gayle, medical doctor and holder of multiple degrees, said she sees value in business working alongside traditional aid groups like CARE, famous for the “CARE Package” post World War II.

“It’s looking at this in a holistic way,” she said. “Let’s look at where aid can be most effective and then let’s look at what else is in the tool kit.

“My real passion was how to make a social difference so I headed in that direction in terms of my career path. That said, these days, the blurring lines between the social sector and business sector are apparent. You see more and more businesses that understand they can do well by doing good. They can use the generation of wealth to actually create social value. Economic value and social value can go hand-in-hand.”